THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
January 29, 2001
EXECUTIVE ORDER
ESTABLISHMENT
OF WHITE HOUSE OFFICE OF FAITH-BASED
AND COMMUNITY INITIATIVES
By the authority vested in me as President of the
United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America,
and in order to help the Federal Government coordinate a national effort to
expand opportunities for faith-based and other community organizations and to
strengthen their capacity to better meet social needs in America's communities,
it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. Faith-based and other
community organizations are indispensable in meeting the needs of poor Americans
and distressed neighborhoods. Government cannot be replaced by such
organizations, but it can and should welcome them as partners. The
paramount goal is compassionate results, and private and charitable community
groups, including religious ones, should have the fullest opportunity permitted
by law to compete on a level playing field, so long as they achieve valid public
purposes, such as curbing crime, conquering addiction, strengthening families
and neighborhoods, and overcoming poverty. This delivery of social
services must be results oriented and should value the bedrock principles of
pluralism, nondiscrimination, evenhandedness, and neutrality.
Sec. 2. Establishment. There is
established a White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (White
House OFBCI) within the Executive Office of the President that will have lead
responsibility in the executive branch to establish policies, priorities, and
objectives for the Federal Government's comprehensive effort to enlist, equip,
enable, empower, and expand the work of faith-based and other community
organizations to the extent permitted by law.
Sec. 3. Functions. The principal
functions of the White House OFBCI are, to the extent permitted by law: (a)
to develop, lead, and coordinate the Administration's policy agenda affecting
faith-based and other community programs and initiatives, expand the role of
such efforts in communities, and increase their capacity through executive
action, legis-lation, Federal and private funding, and regulatory relief;
(b) to ensure that Administration and
Federal Government policy decisions and programs are consistent with the
President's stated goals with respect to faith-based and other community
initiatives;
(c) to help integrate the President's
policy agenda affecting faith-based and other community organizations across the
Federal Government;
(d) to coordinate public education
activities designed to mobilize public support for faith-based and community
nonprofit initiatives through volunteerism, special projects, demonstration
pilots, and public-private partnerships;
(e) to encourage private charitable
giving to support faith-based and community initiatives;
(f) to bring concerns, ideas, and policy
options to the President for assisting, strengthening, and replicating
successful faith-based and other community programs;
(g) to provide policy and legal education
to State, local, and community policymakers and public officials seeking ways to
empower faith-based and other community organizations and to improve the
opportunities, capacity, and expertise of such groups;
(h) to develop and implement strategic
initiatives under the President's agenda to strengthen the institutions of civil
society and America's families and communities;
(i) to showcase and herald innovative
grassroots nonprofit organizations and civic initiatives;
(j) to eliminate unnecessary legislative,
regulatory, and other bureaucratic barriers that impede effective faith-based
and other community efforts to solve social problems;
(k) to monitor implementation of the
President's agenda affecting faith-based and other community organizations; and
(l) to ensure that the efforts of
faith-based and other community organizations meet high standards of excellence
and accountability.
Sec. 4. Administration. (a) The White
House OFBCI may function through established or ad hoc committees, task forces,
or interagency groups.
(b) The White House OFBCI shall have a
staff to be headed by the Assistant to the President for Faith-Based and
Community Initiatives. The White House OFBCI shall have such staff
and other assistance, to the extent permitted by law, as may be necessary to
carry out the provisions of this order. The White House OFBCI
operations shall begin no later than 30 days from the date of this order.
(c) The White House OFBCI shall
coordinate with the liaison and point of contact designated by each executive
department and agency with respect to this initiative.
(d) All executive departments and
agencies (agencies) shall cooperate with the White House OFBCI and provide such
information, support, and assistance to the White House OFBCI as it may request,
to the extent permitted by law.
(e) The agencies? actions directed by
this Executive Order shall be carried out subject to the availability of
appropriations and to the extent permitted by law.
Sec. 5. Judicial Review. This
order does not create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or equity by a party against the United States, its agencies
or instrumentalities, its officers or employees, or any other person.
